Apparatus for production of pyrotechnic effects

ABSTRACT

An apparatus for production of pyrotechnic effects, having a plurality of pyrotechnic charges and initiation means which are accommodated in common casing bodies ( 22 ). According to the invention, the casing bodies ( 22 ) together with the pyrotechnic charges and initiation means are associated with a common mount ( 20 ), the mount having initiation conductors which lead to each initiation means.

STATEMENT OF RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is based on and claims convention priority on German Patent Application No. 10 2006 009 554.5, having a filing date of 28 Feb. 2006, which is incorporated herein in its entirety by this reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field

The invention relates to an apparatus for production of pyrotechnic effects having a plurality of pyrotechnic charges and initiation means which are accommodated in common casing bodies.

2. Related Art

Pyrotechnic effects are used, inter alia, for civil and military defense training purposes. When used in the interior of buildings, for example MOUT training, the pyrotechnic effects are produced by very small amounts of pyrotechnic effect charges.

In the known apparatuses of this type, the effect charges for production of the pyrotechnic effects are accommodated in a casing body, which is tubular or in the form of a sleeve. The effect charge is in this case initiated by electrical detonation pellets. These together with the arrangement of the effect charges in the tubular or sleeve-like casing body make it very complex to produce known apparatuses of this type. This is particularly true when a plurality of pyrotechnic effects are arranged in the same casing body. In this case, the detonation of the individual effect charges by means of the detonation pellets is particularly complex.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for production of pyrotechnic effects, which can be produced easily, particularly when it has a relatively large number of pyrotechnic effects, and which is nevertheless highly reliable.

An apparatus to solve this problem has a plurality of pyrotechnic charges and initiation means which are accommodated in common casing bodies, wherein the casing bodies together with the pyrotechnic charges and initiation means are associated with a common mount, and wherein the mount has initiation conductors which lead to each initiation means. Since the casing bodies together with pyrotechnic charges and initiation means are associated with a common mount and the mount has initiation conductors which lead to each initiation means, this allows a simple configuration and simple production of an apparatus having a plurality of pyrotechnic effects, with the apparatus being highly reliable. The casing bodies together with the pyrotechnic charges and initiation means can be designed in accordance with the requirement. A plurality of casing bodies can be arranged or mounted on the common mount. In this case, there is no need for the initiation means to be components of the casing bodies. The initiation means can in fact also be directly associated with the mount, or can be integrated in it. The initiation conductors which lead to each initiation means are preferably electrical lines, but can also be composed of combustible substances arranged in a linear form, for example as in the case of detonating cords or the like.

The casing bodies are preferably designed such that they each enclose or cover a part of the mount. This allows a close connection to be produced between the casing body and the mount. The mount is relatively flat, with casing bodies raised above it.

That part of the mount which is enclosed by the respective casing body is advantageously the initiation means mount. The initiation means and the initiation means mount are accordingly enclosed by the casing body, and are protected by it.

The casing bodies are each preferably formed by two or more parts. This configuration allows the casing body to easily be connected to the mount and/or to be easily filled.

It is particularly advantageous for the casing body to be configured in such a manner that different parts of the respective casing body are essentially arranged on mutually opposite sides of the mount. The mount can thus easily be enclosed in sections by the casing bodies.

A development of the invention provides for the individual casing bodies to be attached to the mount by the connection of the parts of the respective casing body to one another. The casing bodies and the mounts are accordingly designed such that the connection of the parts of the respective casing body at the same time results in a connection to the mount.

The casing bodies and the mount preferably have suitable recesses and/or projections for this purpose.

The initiation conductors are advantageously embedded in the mount or rest on the mount. In consequence, the initiation conductors are largely protected against external influences. If the initiation conductors only rest on the mount, there is preferably a firm connection to the mount.

The initiation means are preferably in the form of heating resistances. In this case, the initiation conductors are electrical conductors to which the heating resistances are connected. The latter may have heating conductors arranged in a meandering form. A large amount of heat can thus be produced on a small area. In order to locally limit the heat, the heating conductors are preferably designed to be considerably thinner, with considerably smaller cross sections, than the initiation conductors.

A development of the invention provides for the mount to be flat, in particular in the form of a card. The mount dimensions are preferably similar to those of a check card or credit card, or a beer mat. A square, flat design is particularly preferable. However, it may also be in the form of a disk, or may have any other flat shape and size. A minimum thickness is necessary only to achieve sufficient robustness, to accommodate the initiation conductors, and to attach the casing bodies.

The mount advantageously has an initiation means mount for each pyrotechnic charge, with the initiation means mounts being parts or sections of the mount and, in particular, being partially separated along their circumference from the mount as well, in order to form intermediate spaces, with at least one web in each case being formed additionally as a connection between the initiation means mount and the mount. The initiation means mounts may therefore be areas of the mount in which, for example, the heating resistances that have been mentioned are embedded and, in particular, which are designed like tongues.

The initiation conductors are preferably routed along the webs or in the webs and thus also connect the respective initiation means mount to the mount. The webs therefore have a dual function. On the one hand, they hold the initiation means mounts firmly on the mount while, on the other hand, apart from this, they are used to guide the initiation conductors.

According to a further idea of the invention, the mount may have at least one electrical connection, preferably at the edge, and in particular a plug contact, with the connection being connected to all of the initiation conductors. This means that the apparatus according to the invention can easily be connected to a correspondingly configured initiation cable and plug of a firing apparatus.

According to a further idea of the invention, the casing body may in each case have a cover part and a bottom part, with the cover part having a cover internal area which is open to the bottom part in order to hold at least a part of the pyrotechnic charge. The cover part is accordingly in the form of a cavity, and contains the pyrotechnic charge, or a part of it.

The bottom part is preferably provided with a bottom internal area, which is open to the cover part, in order to accommodate at least a smaller part of the pyrotechnic charge. In this configuration, the bottom part also has a cavity, so that the majority of the volume of the pyrotechnic charge is located in the cover part, and the minority in the bottom part. However, a solution is also feasible in which the pyrotechnic charge is arranged only in the cover part or only in the bottom part, or only in a central part located between them.

A further idea according to the invention provides for the bottom part and the cover part each to have circumferential free rims which cover one another, in particular in the area of the mount. The coverage provides good shielding and protection for the contents—the pyrotechnic charge. The arrangement of the coverage in the area of the mount effectively reinforces the casing body, particularly in this area.

The cover part and bottom part are preferably firmly connected to one another, in particular by welding or adhesive bonding. Other types of connection are also possible, such as friction welding, screw connection or a static friction in conjunction with the parts being manufactured such that they fit accurately. The pyrotechnic charge should thus be stored safely until initiation.

According to the invention, the bottom part and/or cover part have/has a recess for a part of the mount, in particular of an initiation means mount, to pass through. Inter alia, this has manufacturing advantages. This allows the mount and the casing body to be connected particularly closely to one another.

The bottom part and cover part may also have side rims, walls or collars, which hold a corresponding rim on the mount between them. The casing body is in this way held in a precisely defined position, and in an extremely robust form, on the mount.

According to the invention, the casing body, in particular on the cover part, and preferably on the upper face of the cover part, may have weak points, in particular weakened material areas in the form of strips or lines. These may cross one another at a common center point, which is preferably at the same time the center point of the upper face of the cover part. The detonation effect of the pyrotechnic charge is thus directed at right angles to the plane of the mount. This results in adjacent pyrotechnic charges influencing one another to the least extent.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further features of the invention can, apart from this, be found in the claims and in the description. Preferred exemplary embodiments of the invention will be explained in more detail in the following text with reference to drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a plan view of an upper face of the apparatus.

FIG. 2 shows a section through the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, along the line C-C.

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the apparatus from underneath.

FIG. 4 shows a plan view of the lower face of the apparatus.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the apparatus.

FIG. 6 shows a perspective plan view of the upper face of the apparatus.

FIG. 7 shows a view from underneath of the apparatus without a casing body, that is to say only of the mount with the initiation conductors.

FIG. 8 shows a view from underneath of the cover part of a casing body.

FIG. 9 shows a section through the cover part along the line A-A in FIG. 10.

FIG. 10 shows a plan view of the cover part of the casing body.

FIG. 11 shows a side view of the cover part.

FIG. 12 shows a perspective plan view of the cover part.

FIG. 13 shows a plan view of a bottom part of the casing body.

FIG. 14 shows a side view of the bottom part.

FIG. 15 shows a section through the bottom part along the line B-B in FIG. 13.

FIG. 16 shows a perspective side view of the bottom part.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The apparatuses shown in the figures are used for civil or military defense training exercises, to be precise in particular in the interior of buildings when, for example, soldiers or police are realistically practicing attacks in buildings or the storming of a building. In this case, the apparatus is used for pyrotechnic simulation of shots, explosions or else flash grenades. However, the use of the apparatus according to the invention is not restricted to this. In fact, it can also be used for other normal simulations.

The described apparatus produces simulations which may be audible and/or visual, by the initiation of pyrotechnic charges. The apparatuses illustrated in the figures have a plurality of pyrotechnic charges. The number of pyrotechnic charges in each apparatus may vary depending on the nature of the simulation. It is also feasible for the apparatus to have only a single pyrotechnic charge and thus to be used only for simulation of a single explosion or the like.

FIGS. 1 to 6 show the apparatus overall, with all of the components, to the extent that these can be seen in the respective view. A plate-like mount 20 is fitted with five pyrotechnic charges 21, with each of them being arranged in a casing body 22. The plate-like mount 20 in this case has an essentially square format with the five casing bodies 22 being arranged like the dots on a die that is to say with four casing bodies in the corners, and one central casing body.

The casing bodies 22 are each formed in two parts, specifically with a cover part 23 and a bottom part 24. The volume between the cover part 23 and the bottom part 24 is completely filled with the respective pyrotechnic charge 21 and a small section of the mount 20. This small section is referred to in the following text as the initiation means mount 25 and, apart from this, is connected via a web 26 to the mount 20, see in particular FIG. 7.

Initiation conductors 26 which are in the form of conductor tracks and run from an edge (or else central) plug contact 27 to the individual initiation means mounts 25 are arranged on the mount 20, or are embedded in it, see in particular FIGS. 4 and 7.

The initiation means mounts 25 are in this case formed by a C-shaped stamped-out area or cutout in the mount 20, in such a manner that a C-shaped free space 29 is produced around each initiation means mount 25 with a web 28.

The initiation conductors 26 end on the initiation means mounts 25 as initiation means 30, which in this case are each in the form of heating resistances. Their meandering configuration and arrangement are indicated in the area of one of the initiation means 30 in FIG. 7.

The initiation conductors 26 first of all run in straight lines (essentially at right angles to the mount edge) in the area of the plug contact 27, at the same distances apart and parallel to one another. The initiation conductors branch off to the individual initiation means mounts 25 approximately at the same level as the initiation means mounts 25 which are closest to the plug contact 27.

The cover part 23 is shown enlarged in FIGS. 8 to 12. The cover part 23 is essentially in the form of a cap with a cylindrically circumferential wall 31 and a convex-curved upper cover wall 32.

At approximately half its height, the cylindrical wall 31 has a circumferential collar 33, which points outwards, with an essentially flat collar lower face 34 parallel to the opening plane of a lower opening 35 in the cover part 23.

The collar 33 subdivides the cylindrical wall 31 into an upper area 36 and a lower area 37. The latter has a recess 38 in the form of a window, a notch or the like, in such a manner that a lower rim 39 is interrupted in the area of the recess 38, in the same way as the lower area 37, over its complete height.

The upper cover wall 32 is provided with weak points. In the present case, these are three strip-like cross-sectional constrictions 40, which cross one another at the center point 41 of the upper cover wall 32 and extend as far as the cylindrical wall 31, or are at only a short distance from it.

The cross-sectional constrictions 40 are in the form of recesses with a V-shape or trough-shaped cross section, in the material on the upper face 42 of the upper cover wall 32.

The bottom part 24 is designed in a corresponding manner to the cover part 23, specifically with a circumferential cylindrical wall 43 and a bottom wall 44 which projects outwards at the side with a rim area 45 beyond the cylindrical wall 43. An outer cylindrical wall 46 then extends upwards at a distance from the cylindrical wall 43 and outside the rim strips 45, and is approximately only half as high as the cylindrical wall 43.

An annular gap 47 is formed, starting from the rim strip 45, between the cylindrical wall 43 and the outer cylindrical wall 46. The cross section of the annular gap 47 is designed such that the lower area 37 of the cover part 23 is accommodated in it, see in particular FIG. 2. When the casing body 22 is joined together, the cylindrical wall 31 accordingly engages over the cylindrical wall 43, but remains within the outer cylindrical wall 46.

The height of the outer cylindrical wall 46 and the height of the lower area 37 and/or the arrangement of the collar 33 are matched to one another such that just the mount 22 is held in an area around the free space 29 between the collar 33 and the outer cylindrical wall 46, and the collar lower face 34 rests on the mount 20.

The cylindrical wall 43 has a window-like recess 48, which corresponds to the recess 38, extends as far as the bottom wall 44, and is open in the direction of the cover part 23. The two recesses 38, 48 come to rest directly one in front of the other in the casing body 22 which is formed from the cover part 23 and the bottom part 24, thus forming an access to the interior of the casing body 22. This access is preferably of just the same size and has a corresponding cross section, such that the web 28 can pass through it with as little play as possible. In a corresponding manner, the web 28 and the recesses 38, 48 are designed such that they correspond to one another.

FIG. 2 shows a cross section through one of the casing bodies 22. The initiation means mount 25 can be seen well in its position at a short distance from the bottom wall 44 and from the cylindrical wall 43, and at a considerably greater distance from the upper cover wall 32. The volume within the casing body 22 is filled—apart from the initiation means mount 25—with the pyrotechnic charge 21, that is to say in this case also in the area between the initiation means mount 25 and the bottom wall 44. However, a configuration is also possible in which the initiation means mount 25 rests directly on the bottom wall 44.

The casing bodies 22 are preferably produced from plastic, which can be welded after filling. The mount 22 is essentially produced in the form of a printed circuit board with conductor tracks applied to it as initiation conductors 26. The initiation conductors 26 are preferably applied to a lower face 49 of the mount 20.

The above detailed description of the preferred embodiments, examples, and the appended figures are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope and spirit of the invention, and its equivalents, as defined by the appended claims. One skilled in the art will recognize that many variations can be made to the invention disclosed in this specification without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

-   20 Mount 46 Outer cylindrical wall -   21 Pyrotechnic charge 47 Annular gap -   22 Casing body 48 Recess -   23 Cover part 49 Lower face -   24 Bottom part -   25 Initiation means mount -   26 Initiation conductor -   27 Plug contact -   28 Web -   29 Free space -   30 Initiation means -   31 Cylindrical wall -   32 Upper cover wall -   33 Collar -   34 Collar lower face -   35 Opening -   36 Upper area -   37 Lower area -   38 Recess -   39 Lower rim -   40 Cross-sectional constriction -   41 Center point -   42 Upper face -   43 Cylindrical wall -   44 Bottom wall -   45 Rim strip 

1. An apparatus for production of pyrotechnic effects, having a plurality of pyrotechnic charges (21) and initiation means which are accommodated in common casing bodies (22), wherein the casing bodies (22) together with the pyrotechnic charges (21) and initiation means (30) are associated with a common mount (20), and wherein the mount (20) has initiation conductors (26) which lead to each initiation means (30).
 2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the casing bodies (22) each extend over a part of the mount (20).
 3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein that part of the mount (20) which is occupied by the respective casing body (22) is the initiation means mount (25).
 4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the casing bodies (22) are in each case formed by more than one part.
 5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the casing bodies (22) are in each case formed by two parts.
 6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein different parts of the respective casing body (22) are arranged on mutually opposite sides of the mount (20).
 7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the individual casing bodies (22) are attached to the mount (20) by connection of the parts of the respective casing body (22) to one another.
 8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the initiation conductors (26) are embedded in the mount (20).
 9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the initiation conductors (26) rest on the mount (20).
 10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the initiation means (30) are in the form of heating resistances.
 11. The apparatus as claimed in claim 10, wherein the heating resistances have heating conductors arranged in a meandering form.
 12. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mount (20) is flat.
 13. The apparatus as claimed in claim 12, wherein the flat mount (20) is in the form of a check card.
 14. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mount (20) has an initiation means mount (25) for each pyrotechnic charge (21), with the initiation means mounts (25) being selected areas on the mount (20).
 15. The apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the initiation means mounts (25) are at least partially separated from the mount (20) forming intermediate spaces.
 16. The apparatus as claimed in claim 15, wherein at least one web (28) is provided as a connection between each initiation means mount (25) and the mount (20).
 17. The apparatus as claimed in claim 16, wherein the initiation conductors (26) are routed along the webs (28).
 18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the mount (20) has at least one electrical connection, with the connection being connected to all of the initiation conductors (26).
 19. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the casing bodies (22) each have a cover part (23) and a bottom part (24).
 20. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the cover part (23) has a cover internal area, which is open to the bottom part, for holding at least a part of the pyrotechnic charge (21).
 21. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the bottom part (24) has a bottom internal area, which is open to the cover part (23), for holding at least a smaller part of the pyrotechnic charge (21).
 22. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the bottom part (24) and the cover part (23) each have circumferential free rims which cover one another in the area of the mount (20).
 23. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the bottom part (24) and the cover part (23) are firmly connected to one another.
 24. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the bottom part (24) or the cover part (23) has a recess (38, 48) for a part of the mount (20) to pass through.
 25. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the bottom part (24) and the cover part (23) have a recess (38, 48) for a part of the mount (20) to pass through.
 26. The apparatus as claimed in claim 24, wherein the recesses (38, 48) are designed for the initiation means mount (25) to pass through.
 27. The apparatus as claimed in claim 25, wherein the recesses (38, 48) are designed for the initiation means mount (25) to pass through.
 28. The apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein the bottom part (24) and the cover part (23) have side rims which hold a corresponding rim on the mount (20) between them.
 29. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the casing bodies (22) have weak points.
 30. The apparatus as claimed in claim 29, wherein the weak points are in the form of strip-like cross-sectional constrictions (40). 